The Promise
by xeirani
Summary: Nari met Gaara long ago. Their week-long friendship is something she holds close to her heart, one good memory amongst all the bad. However, when they meet once more, neither is the same. The promise they had made when they parted ways has been broken on both sides, harsh realities having shattering their hopeful naivety. Summary continued within. Warnings inside. Fem!NarutoxGaara
1. Prologue: The First Meeting

_Disclaimer: I own nothing of Naruto. That enormously addicting, successful, influential piece of trash goes to Kishi. However, I did somewhat create this piece of trash, and as a result, OC's such as mean-villager-lady belong to yours truly, I guess._

**The Promise**

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Pairings: Fem!NarutoxGaara

Nari met Gaara long ago. Their week-long friendship is something she holds close to her heart, one good memory amongst all the bad. However, when they meet once more, neither is the same. The promise they had made when they parted ways has been broken on both sides, harsh realities having shattering their hopeful naivety. As each hurtles further down their respective paths, can they find a way to return to their previous relationship? Or did breaking the promise so many years ago destroy any chances of recreating the best thing either has ever had?

Notes: Nari knows about everything via Kurama

Warnings: bullying, child abuse, rape

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PROLOGUE

It was a well-known fact throughout the ninja village of Konohagakure that four-year-old Uzumaki Nari was an expert at puppy-dog eyes. The little redhead could make even the hardest people melt when she gave them the pout. Of course, this didn't change how they treated the demon brat; she was still a monster. But if she wanted something badly enough, even the villagers who despised her would find it extremely impossible to resist those eyes of the prettiest blue on her innocent little whiskered face. And if you said otherwise, it probably hadn't been used on you.

Currently, "the face," as it had been codenamed by her ANBU guards, was being turned onto the owner of a ramen stand, who had the unfortunate fate of dealing with the girl and her insatiable appetite whenever free food was involved.

"Ne, Teuchi-jii, could I have another bowl?" She looked at him, eyes wide. Normal people - Konoha's residents - would have attempted to resist what some had speculated was a strange, hypnosis kekkai genkai, but the kindly old man just laughed and passed her another bowl (it had already been ready the moment she had begun to slurp down her first).

"Of course, Nari-chan. It's on the house." Oh, how she loved Ichiraku's. They were the cause of her ramen obsession; Teuchi-jii and Ayame-nee were two of the only people who welcomed Nari with open arms. Speaking of which, where was Ayame-nee?

Sticking her head up from the new bowl that she had already halfway devoured, Nari voiced her question out loud, and was replied with a throaty laugh from the girl's father. He beckoned her close.

"Ayame is..." He looked looked around conspiratorially, before adding in a stage whisper, "On a date!"

"What? With who?" She demanded, wide-eyed. Despite being only ten, Ayame was very pretty, and therefore very popular with the other gender.

"A young Uchiha lad, I believe." Nari wrinkled her nose. The Uchiha always seemed a little stuck up to her, so she always avoided them whenever they came marching down the streets in their fancy police uniforms.

"Did you make sure he was good enough for Ayame-nee?" She asked seriously. She was very protective of her surrogate sister.

"Ah, I was in the middle of interrogating him, but Ayame dragged him out of the house. Now he better be a perfect gentleman to her, or-"

"Shisui was a perfect gentleman." The girl in question entered the shop, cutting off her father. "He's a little wild, though. Not like any Uchiha I've ever met."

"Ayame-nee! Ayame-nee!" yelled Nari, running over to the girl. Her sister laughed, picking her up and spinning her around, before setting her back down with a pat on her head. "Tell me all about the date! What did you do? Was he nice? Did you kiss?"

"Yes, Ayame." Teuchi leaned over the counter. "Did you kiss?" She shot him a dirty look and he backed off inside the kitchen.

"No we didn't, for your information." She said the last part to her obviously eavesdropping father, before turning to the red-headed girl who was still hanging off of her. "I'm only ten, and it was our first date. Also, I'm not sure if he liked me that much. He didn't say anything about seeing each other again." Nari gave this a little thought, screwing her face up comically, the way Jiji did when he was thinking about paperwork. Her eyes suddenly widened in an epiphany, and she turned to Ayame.

"Then he sucks."

"Oh, wow. I guess I wasted my time coming here, then." A preteen boy poked his head in through the flaps. "And I was going to invite you on a second date, too." He gestured to the purple petunias in his hand.

"Shisui-kun!" Said Ayame, surprised. "You didn't need to get me flowers!"

"Ah, my aunt said it would be a good idea, so I did. I didn't know how to ask you back on the date, so..." He looked down at his shoes, suddenly shy. Nari took this as her cue to leave.

"Have fun, Ayame-nee!" She laughed, running out of the shop.

"Matte, Nari-chan!" Despite the blush on Ayame's face, her sister was still able to scold her. "You left your ramen!" Eh, she'd get to that later. More importantly, Ayame was getting asked out, and she didn't want to be in the middle of that to ruin it. The villagers said she ruined a lot of stuff just by being there, and while she didn't believe them, she didn't want to take any chances.

As she ran, dodging angry civilians, she daydreamed of a day when she'd be in Ayame's shoes. 'Maybe I'll grow up pretty like Ayame-nee, and boys will like me too! And they'll blush and give me flowers, and, and...' She shook her head inwardly, changing her mind. 'No, not flowers. If a boy gives me ramen, I'll love him forever!' But as all fantasies seemed to do for her, this one came crashing down, as Nari bumped into a an elderly woman.

"Gomen!" She called out behind her, rushing away as fast as she could. It was a strategy she had developed, running as quickly as possible to avoid hearing comments people made about her. She was not fast enough.

"Irritating demon-gaki." The lady muttered. "Takes away my son and then tries to ruin my day, probably because no one will love her like I did my poor Hiroshi."

Ah, that was right. How could she have forgotten, when she had heard that line before? Whether it came from a nursing mother or an old man, everyone seemed to share the same opinion that no one could love her. And if so many people thought it was true, it must be. There was no point in getting excited over something that would never happen.

But despite Nari's acceptance over the situation, she could still feel tears coming to her eyes. She ran faster to get out of the area, as her tears only seemed to spur the villagers on. Using every shortcut she could think of, she turned corners, climbed walls, anything that would get her home quicker. If she cried in public, who knows what would happen?

It happened as Nari was ducking into an alleyway, looking around for anyone who might spot her, but not in front of her.

"Oof!" said the person she slammed into. Immediately, her teary eyes grew wide and she shielded them from view.

"Gomenesai, gomenesai!" she yelped, bringing her hands up to ward off an invisible hit. Nothing came. Hesitantly, she lowered her arms too see a confused boy. Sand swirled mystically around him, and she watched transfixed, as it flew through the air, funneling into a peanut-thing he had on his back.

"Whoa." She said, before looking up at the boy's face. His eyes were as wide as hers had been before, and he backed away, looking terrified.

"M-matte!" She yelled, running after him. Sand bullets shot out at her as he dashed further down the alley, but she just dodged them. She was used to things being thrown at her.

As he reached the end of the alley, he stopped, turning to face her with his back pressed up against the wall. If it were Nari, she would have climbed over the wall, but the boy didn't look very athletic. He was already winded, just by the small chase. His sand built up a barricade in front of him, like he thought she was going to hurt him.

"What's your name?" She asked softly. Ayame-nee had spoken in the same tone to a small kitten she had found on the side of the road, telling Nari that it was better to not scare the poor thing by speaking loudly. She figured the same principles applied here.

"You're not scared of me?" Replied the boy tentatively, and he barrier of sand lowered, enough for her to see his suspicious face.

"No, why would I be?" She answered, confused. The wall came down completely, and the boy just indicated to it.

"Why would I be scared of that?" She asked. "If anything, I thought it was really cool, and... cool." She finished, lamely. Her vocabulary was fairly developed, but she was still only four. The boy laughed loudly, sounding like a bell. Nari stared at him in shock.

"W-what?" He asked, self-consciously.

"You looked so scared before, so I didn't expect you to do that."

"Oh." He looked down shyly. Nari wracked her brains, unsure of what to say now. People she talked to usually always knew how to continue the conversation. She was startled out of her thoughts by him saying something.

"Sorry, what?" She asked, proud of herself for adding the sorry like Jiji always told her to.

"Why were you crying?" He repeated softly. Oh. She had forgotten about that. She reached up to her face, and could feel the traces of some tears.

"Oh, well..." She was unsure of what to say. If she told on the old woman, she might get in trouble and come after Nari. That's what happened when she told Jiji about the orphanage matron. But this boy was just a kid, and even with his cool sand thing, he probably couldn't do much. So she settled for the truth.

"An old lady said something mean." She answered. "She said that no one would love me."

"Why?" He asked, sounding horrified.

"Well, people don't really like me here." Nari admitted. "They say that I'm a demon." She waited for him to run away, but he just stared at her, shocked. The way Jiji did when she copied all of his paperwork and tricked him into thinking that he hadn't done any of it. Like it was familiar.

"Are you a demon?" He pressed himself against the wall even more.

"No!" she yelled quickly. "Ku-chan's the demon, and he's inside of me dattebayo!" Crap. Kurama told her not to tell anyone that. Once again, he didn't respond the way most people would. He just stared at her, jaw wide open. Nari hoped it was because of her verbal tic, and not because of the secret she had just blurted out. She poked his cheek, ignoring the sand that moved restlessly on the ground, like an animal baring it's fangs threateningly. He didn't respond.

"Hey... Are you okay?" She asked, scared.

'I think I broke him.' She was going to be in so much trouble for this.

"K-ku-chan?" He stuttered. Well, Nari had already told him. She might as well elaborate.

"Yeah. He doesn't like it when I call him that, though. His name's Kurama." She took a deep breath. "The day I was born, the Yondaime Hokage sealed Ku-chan into me. Everyone in the village hates me because they think I'm him. But he says that I'm just his container."

"A jinchuuriki." He breathed. She looked at him, confused.

"What's a jin-jinshoo..." Struggling to sound it out, she gave up. "What's that?"

"Someone who has a demon inside them." The boy stared at her intently, his pale blue-green eyes locking on her cerulean ones. "I'm a jinchuuriki too." Nari took a moment to process that.

"You have a Ku-chan in you too!?" She gasped.

"No... A different demon. The one-tailed tanuki, Shukaku." Something about the way he phrased it struck a chord in Nari's mind.

"Oh, yeah. Ku-chan said he was something like that. The nine-tailed fox."

"You host the Kyuubi?" He practically squeaked. "Mother's ranted about him before."

"Mother?" Lucky boy, he had a kaa-san. She probably protected him from anyone hurting him because they hated him.

"Er... Shukaku." Oh. She blushed, angry at herself for jumping to conclusions. "I don't have a mother."

"Neither do I dattebayo!" The boy was more like her than she thought. "Or a father. Or any family."

"I have a father." He said softly. "And a sister and a brother."

"Really!? What's it like?"

"Um." He looked away uncomfortably, and Nari instantly felt bad for intimidating him.

"Gomen." She looked down at her shoes, feeling the hole at the front with her big toe. "I don't really have friends who tell me about their families. All the mothers want their children to stay away from me." He looked at her sadly.

"I know the feeling." Her head shot up, surprise evident in her eyes.

"I thought you said you had a family. They could play with you."

"My dad's the Kazekage, so he works all the time, and he doesn't really like me. Kankuro and Temari - my brother and sister - are both scared of me because of Shukaku." She stared at him in wonder.

"You're from Suna? And your dad's the Kazekage? Cool!" He shook his head ruefully.

"He brought me here because he wants me to learn to interact with people better. But he didn't want me around him, so he pushed me out of the room."

"He doesn't sound that nice."

"He's not. My uncle, Yashamaru, is the only one who really likes me. But he doesn't count as a friend."

"Same with me. I've got Teuchi-jii and Ayame-nee, and even Jiji, the Hokage," she added for his benefit. "But none of them really count either." They lapsed into silence, each wanting to continue, but not knowing what to say next.

"Ne..." She said, breaking the silence first. "What's your name?"

"Gaara."

"I'm Nari dattebayo!" She grinned. "Ne, Gaara, want to be my first friend?" She held out her hand. He returned the smile shakily, as if he couldn't believe she had asked that.

"Y-yes." Clasping her hand tentatively, Gaara shook it. "I'd like that." Suddenly, there was a great rumbling noise. Nari scratched the back of her head sheepishly.

"Gomen, I didn't get to finish eating my ramen. I had to run out quickly because Ayame-nee..." She jumped, remembering why she had left in the first place. "Ayame-nee! I need to find out what happened!" Before she could run away, she remembered the boy in front of her.

"Gaara, want to come with me to my favorite place in the whole wide world?"

Uncertainly, he answered, "I don't know. I should be getting back to my father..." She pouted, unknowingly giving him the face. "...but I guess that can wait." Eyes sparkling, Nari grabbed his hand and began running.

"Gaara?" She shouted at him, as he tried to focus on not tripping over his own feet while she navigated.

"Yeah?"

"How much do you like ramen?" He looked taken aback by the question.

"I-it's okay…" He replied, nervously. Nari grinned.

"Gaara?"

"Yeah?"

"I think this is the start of something great." It was a corny line, one she had read in a book in Jiji's office when she was waiting for him to return. But she couldn't help but feel that it was the perfect thing to describe that day.

OoOoO

The Kazekage's political visit to Konoha with his son took a little over a week. And during that week, Nari and Gaara became inseparable. They learned everything about each other, from Gaara's sleeping habits to Nari's dreams.

So close were they, that Nari burst into tears when her best friend told her that he was leaving.

"I don't know when I'm coming back." He told his fellow redhead softly. "I'm a jinchuuriki and the Kazekage's son. Dad said that they barely let me leave Suna for this. He said they wouldn't want to risk it. You're the Kyuubi's host, so I'm guessing that it'll be the same for you. I think the only way to get out would be to be on a ninja mission."

"Good thing I'm gonna be Hokage then." She said, trying to dry her watery eyes with the back of her hand.

"And I'm going to be Kazekage. And we can show everyone that we're worth something, that we're not just demons."

"Mhm." She stuck out her fist. "Don't ever let anyone change you, Gaara. It's you and me against the world."

He bumped his fist against hers. "I never will. And you can't either. We'll meet again." He promised. "I'll remember you. I don't think you're that easy to forget."

"And I'll recognize you by the peanut on your back." She joked, and he laughed. She had refused to call it a gourd when he told her what it was, claiming that the name sounded stupid.

"Bye, Gaara." As he stared at those pretty blue eyes, the same shade as the sky behind her from where they sat on the Hokage Monument, he grabbed her outstretched fist before she could retract it. He pulled her towards him, setting her lips on hers. They were four; it was clumsy, awkward, and perfect.

"Bye, Nari." He whispered, taking off running. She stared at his retreating back, her mind a whirlwind. She swore to herself that she'd see him again, her irreplaceable best friend. Their promise to never change was what would keep her going until she did.

Little did she know that long before the day they reunited came, that oath would would be shattered into a million pieces on both sides.


	2. Chapter 2: Sakana-san and Option 3

_Disclaimer: So like, Naruto. You know, that manga/anime/movie franchise that reads like Kishi had access to the fanfiction some of y'all write on this site? Yeah. That's owned by said wonderful Japanese man who may or may not have ruined my childhood with his creation. I myself only get OC's like mean-villager-lady, Sakamoto, the Hokage's ex-assistants, Himiko-san and other current assistants, and Sakana-san._

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**A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR (THAT'S ME!):**

Yeah, so I originally published this fic from my stores of unused stories that I wrote years ago for the sole purpose of getting enough published words to create a beta account (you should check it out by the way). I didn't actually expect to get any follows or favorites or anything... so... um, thanks for surprising me, I guess? I wasn't actually intending on updating this really, which is why it took me so long to write this chapter.

It also took me a bit because this chapter is kinda a filler. I was actually intending to get to the exam, but I got caught up in writing Sakamoto-san, who took up a lot of words. There's a certain range in the number of words that I want in each chapter and with the exam scene, I'd have to condense it and squeeze it in somehow. Which I don't want to do.

Rest assured, Nari and her classmates will have... interesting relationships.

I don't really know where I'm going with Sakana-san. He just kind of happened, I guess. He might be important later on. Who knows? I rather like his off-kilter character, so we'll see.

I'm in a bit of an irritated mood because I had to go through this chapter and fix the strange formatting that occurred when I copy-n-pasted this from Google Docs. I don't have Word because I've lost a lot of documents from computer crashes in the past, as I'm too lazy to back up my computer on a schedule. I guess this is just the price for taking shortcuts (aka saving all my stuff on the internet).

Cheer me up please? Leave a review so I don't have to take the word of my only friend who knows about this... er... hobby who would never give me criticism if she thought it would hurt my feelings.

Yeah. Here we go!

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Chapter 1

_On their first day together, Nari and Gaara played until sunset. The two were so wrapped up in a game of hide-and-go-seek-tag-and-tackle (Nari had added in the 'tackle' part because it made the game more fun), that they didn't notice the sky turning dark. Only after a villager had yelled at the 'ruffians' in the street to go home did they notice the moon high up in the sky, sparkling amongst the stars._

"_I-I have to go back home to my dad!" Gaara yelped, frightened at what would happen should his father be angry. "He hates it when I'm late."_

_Nari wanted to protest, but she saw the frightened look in the young boy's eyes. Hiding her worry, she decided to be thankful that she had had him for that day at least._

"_I'm glad we got to be friends for today, at least," she said, grinning her usual fox-like grin._

"_Why do you sound like you're saying goodbye to me… forever?" He frowned. Tendrils of black, depressing thoughts crept into his mind. Was she trying to get rid of him? Had he imagined all the fun they had had that day?_

_Nari, in turn, looked confused. "You're leaving, aren't you? How long do these dip-dopro-dippimatic… visits take, anyway?" Gaara nearly cried in relief._

"_I'm going to be here for another six days!" he replied, laughing. "How could the Kazekage finish all his business in a day?"_

_She blushed hotly, muttering, "Oh. W-well… you should probably get going, then."_

"_Yeah," he murmured sadly. Then, he looked hopeful. "Can we play together tomorrow?"_

"_Oh course!" she cried, shocking him. Gaara winced and covered his ears. "Sorry… anyway, you should meet me at my apartment."_

"_Where's that?"_

_Nari wondered what the best way to answer that question was. She would give him the address, but she wasn't completely sure if the ancient, dilapidated building had one of those. It was really quite old. So she settled on giving him convoluted, complicated directions that would hopefully lead him to the right place._

"_So you know Ichiraku's, right? As if you're staring at it, turn right, walk two streets, turn left, keep walking until you get to the mean-mean baker's place -"_

"_The mean-mean baker?" Gaara couldn't help but ask._

"_There's the mean baker, and then there's the mean-mean baker. I don't really actually know if he's a baker though. He does stand outside and throw rolling pins at kids… well at me, but I'm a kid."_

"_Ah."_

"_But anyway, once you get there, take a sharp left and enter an alley. There, you need to climb over the wall, which should lead you into a training ground. Hopefully there won't be any ninja actually training there, or they might use you as target practice."_

"_Hopefully?" he squeaked._

"_Yeah, I don't really know their schedule. So then you turn right and run down to the end of the training ground - easy to do when they're chasing you - and hop over the fence on the right of the oak tree. Make sure you don't accidentally climb over the one on the left. Trust me, you won't like the what happens."_

"_Why?"_

"_Trust me."_

"_But wh-"_

"_Trust me." She gave him a silencing look, and shuddered, likely remembering the incident that made her avoid the left side of the tree. "Anyway, then you get to the park, where you get to the purple slide and climb to the top."_

"_Purple slide, got it," he said affirmingly._

"_If there's kids in line, make sure to wait your turn or their parents get really angry. Once you get to the top of the slide, look for the house with the lights on."_

"_House with lights on, okay."_

"_The lights are always on, for whatever reason. Even in the day. Slide down the slide and go towards it, but once you reach this giant archway -"_

"_Giant archway."_

"_There should be people inside that look like they've got sticks up their asses and have this stupid fan on their backs. Avoid them at all costs. Turn right again, and then you should get to the poorer district."_

"_Poorer district."_

"_Most people call it the ghetto -"_

"_The ghetto!?" Gaara asked, alarmed. Suna had one of those, and the people inside weren't the nicest._

"_Yes, now stop interrupting me dattebayo!" Nari shot him an irritated glare before continuing. "It's not an actual ghetto, and the people inside aren't that bad. They just haven't had the opportunities in life to live in a better part of the village. You should still be careful, though. Anyway, walk to the end of it, and you should find my building. You'll know it by the old geezer who camps out front. He likes to yell in his sleep. I'm on the top floor."_

_Gaara carefully processed the information in his head and nodded at her. "I'll be there," he swore. She laughed, and held out her fist. He looked at Nari questioningly._

"_It's a fist-bump, baka. Punch it!" she said. Gaara looked affronted at her insult, but proceeded to hit her clenched hand anyway._

"_See you tomorrow!" he shouted, running away._

"_Yeah!" Nari called behind him. She walked slowly back to her apartment, giving the man lying spread-eagle on the ground a wide-berth when she got there. It was a happy day, and it was the first time in a long while that she was looking forward to the next._

_She decided to treat herself for her late dinner, taking two store-bought ramen packets from her stores under the floorboard by the broken refrigerator. It was where she kept all her prized possessions including an orange blanket Jiji had gotten her when she left the orphanage a year before, and a picture book about the Yondaime Hokage that he had given her for her last birthday. Nari really loved the old man._

_She was busy slurping down her third bowl - she really couldn't stop herself once she started - when a tentative knock came from her door. It was so soft that she almost didn't hear it over the sleep-screaming of the man outside. She picked up a broomstick that she kept next to her shoes - inside, so no one stole them - for the sole purpose of beating up intruders, and hesitantly cracked the door open. When she saw who was there, Nari flung it all the way, so hard it smacked against the walls and nearly came off its hinges._

"_Gaara!?" she squealed. "What are you doing here?" He hesitated, and she used that time to take in his soiled appearance. His clothes were disheveled and he looked like he had rolled through mud. The most troubling part was the way he cast his eyes downward, unwilling to look her in her eyes._

_Finally, he said, "H-he told me that if I came back late, I must not want to come back at all. He's just going to be expecting me at the end of the trip, but that's it." Before Gaara could react, she grabbed him by the arm and dragged him inside the small apartment._

"_Then I guess you'll stay here!" she proclaimed loudly._

"_Thank y -" She cut him off._

"_Don't mention it. Seriously. Now we can play together all the time!"_

_Gaara looked at her fierce, vibrant smile and couldn't help but smile as well._

OoOoO

"ASSASSINS, I TELL YOU! THEY'RE AFTER ME!"

Nari jerked up at the shout, hitting her head on the old wood of her headboard. She winced, rubbing the back of her head sleepily.

Slowly, she sat up, looking around her small two-room apartment with heavy-lidded eyes. When was the last time she had been happy to wake up here? Nari couldn't remember. However, the real question was… what had woken her up?

"I'M NOT CRAZY, IT'S THE ASSASSINS!"

Ah. She could feel a headache coming on already.

'_Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up.'_

And there was another headache in the making.

'Kurama, you're really not helping.'

'_Demons need sleep too, you know,' _he grumbled.

'You already sleep like twenty hours a day.'

The fox growled menacingly, but thankfully stayed quiet.

"THEY'RE ALL COMING FOR US. BUT ESPECIALLY ME. THEY'RE COMING FOR MEEE!"

In a few fluid motions, Nari flung blankets off, jumped out of the bed, walked to her window, and flung it open.

"KAORU, SHUT THE HELL UP!" she screamed at the old man, lying on the streets below. He opened a lazy eye and shook his head at her, clicking his tongue.

He replied, "IT'S KAORU-_SAN_, DEMON GAKI. ADD THE _SAN_! SHOW SOME _RESPECT_ TO YOUR _ELDERS_!" Kaoru didn't really mean anything by calling her a demon brat. He just noticed everyone calling her that and thought it was a nickname. For someone who was sure that he knew all of Konoha's dangerous secrets, it was incredibly laughable that he hadn't heard the worst-kept one.

"I'LL RESPECT YOU WHEN YOU FINALLY STOP WAKING ME UP BEFORE DAWN, KAORU!"

"IT _IS _DAWN, DAMN DEMON-GAKI. LOOK! IT'S THE SUNRISE. BESIDES, YOU JUST WOKE ME UP TOO WITH ALL YOUR YELLING." Indeed, the sun was beginning to rise, the top of the ball of yellow peeking out over the forest.

"BECAUSE YOU WOULDN'T SHUT UP!"

"BOTH OF YOU BE QUIET! YOUR WAKING UP THE DAMN NEIGHBORHOOD!" Yasuo, the building manager across the street, shrieked.

"OH JUST STOP, YACCHI!" yelled a tenant of another building down the street.

"NO, YOU JUST STOP, SHIKU-SAN!" cried another.

"_SEE_, DEMON-GAKI! THERE'S THE _SAN_, THERE'S _RESPECT!"_

"WHY CAN'T ALL OF YOU JUST GO BACK TO SLEEP!?"

"I SWEAR I'LL MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO MOVE OUT OF HERE ONE DAY!"

"YOU'RE ALL JUST ADDING TO THE NOISE!" someone wailed, obviously trying to get in whatever precious minutes of sleep they could before the day truly started. Nari empathized with the person.

She slammed her windows shut with a sigh and walked over to her bed, fixing the orange covers. She attempted to block out the sounds of more people waking up and adding in their own two cents, as if everyone hadn't heard before. It was a daily occurrence, and people rarely changed their stances on the neighborhood screaming match: everyone hated it, but contributed to it anyway.

OoOoO

"Yo Jiji, what's up?" Nari burst into the Hokage's office, out of breath. The shouting of several assistants could be heard before the door slammed shut behind her.

'_Don't look now. The fish-masked ANBU slipped in behind Sarutobi while you entered. Probably your guard for today.'_

'Fish mask? How does that work?'

'_It's an interesting design.'_

"You are up quite early, as always, Nari." Sarutobi said pleasantly. The young, black-haired Chuunin seated in front of the elderly Hokage - rank evident by his flak jacket and youth - didn't seem quite as pleased. He turned to face her, dislike glittering in his deep brown eyes. Nari just ignored him.

"Never by choice, Jiji," she replied solemnly. The Chuunin seemed shocked by her lack of respect for their leader, looking even more surprised when Sarutobi just laughed at the young girl's antics. He continued to appraise her silently, while she continued to diligently avoid his eyes.

The door slammed open once again, and a disheveled young assistant caught her breath in the doorway, as if she had sprinted to the office. She bowed, brown hair falling out of the usual neat, pinned-back style Nari saw it in most days. Then, she straightened up, eye twitching when she saw the young redhead, and she turned to address the Hokage.

"I apologize, Hokage-sama. Uzumaki-san refused to wait for me to come see you before barging in here herself."

"It's quite alright, Himiko-kun. You may return to your post." Himiko bowed, shooting a glare at Nari, before shutting the door quietly behind her and strutting gracefully back to her desk.

Sarutobi sent Nari a look that said "we'll talk about this later" and he indicated to another chair in the corner. She took the seat gratefully.

"Hokage-sama, this is highly… unusual. Perhaps the d- _Uzumaki-san_ should wait outside until we are finished." Sarutobi narrowed his eyes, and the young Chuunin shuffled backward in his chair, shuddering under his gaze.

"I believe that it is up to me who is in my office, when I call my shinobi in to talk about an unfavorably-completed mission, Sakamoto-kun," Sarutobi replied, smiling menacingly.

"B-but Hokage-sama! I did what you asked of me! And I remembered to submit the mission report this time as well!" Sakamoto said, looking agitated.

"Honda-san sent me a letter of her concerns with your conduct. According to her, while you escorted her from Sunagakure successfully, through the trip you complained about being stuck in the heat, and refused to keep an eye on her merchandise while she took some rest." Nari stifled a grin as Sakamoto grew pale.

"It was a C-rank mission in the middle of the desert. And no bandits would be after her useless books!" Sakamoto defended, before withering once more under Sarutobi's all-powerful gaze. The old man sighed.

"Sakamoto-kun," he began, breathing deeply. "I must respect your decision as leader of your own mission to not guard Honda-san's merchandise, but Honda-san wishes that you had taken more care with her precious books. Therefore, her expectations were not met, and she is quite upset about this. The rest of her letter continues in a similar fashion, talking about your 'general unpleasantness' as she puts it."

Sarutobi paused for a moment, as if to give Sakamoto a moment to defend himself. The chuunin shuffled in his chair a bit, but nodded at his superior to continue. Nari was surprised. She expected the boy to jump up and shout and scream and get suspended from the line of duty. The Hokage's lips twitched slightly from the thin, pursed line they were in, and he continued.

"I don't believe that you meant to be 'generally unpleasant'," he admitted. "However, your client saw it that way, which means that you didn't make a good impression on her, that Konohagakure didn't make a good impression on her. While it is important to complete the mission, it is also important to keep the client happy. Remember that every time you take a mission, you are representing your village, your home."

He paused once more and tilted his head, looking directly into the boy's glittering brown eyes. Something in the way Sarutobi's own eyes glinted made it seem as though he was expecting an actual reaction. Sakamoto gulped. Then, he bowed his head.

"I apologize, Hokage-sama. What is my punishment?" This time, Sarutobi smiled fully.

"I'll be honest here. I think that you had good intentions. You were trying to maximize on the hours of sleep you had, in order to effectively watch Honda-san's merchandise when the sun was at its peak." Sakamoto's head shot up, and he looked at the Hokage in wonder.

Nari shook her head at this, unnoticed by the two, thinking, 'Jiji really likes to assume the best in people, huh.'

'_That he does,'_ Kurama replied, laughing a sardonic, guttural laugh.

"However," Sarutobi continued. "Konoha does not usually get complaint letters from clients. It's so rare, in fact, that had you been a more seasoned shinobi, I might have given you a month of D-rank missions." Sakamoto's eyes went wide in horror.

'D-ranks suck. Good to know.' noted Nari in her mind.

"Yet, because I believe in you so, I won't do that. Instead, you will be given a two-week transfer to the Academy, to serve as Umino-sensei's teaching assistant. I believe some time under him will be quite enlightening. Report to his classroom tomorrow at lunch, after the graduates have been assigned their teams."

Sakamoto nodded, replying with a "Hai, Hokage-sama."

"Also, please be conscious of the way you are perceived. Try to keep your quote-on-quote 'general unpleasantness' to a minimum, Sakamoto-kun. It would do you some good. The best shinobi can constantly keep their emotions in check, greeting everyone they meet with a smile, even those who they believe don't deserve it." With this, Sakamoto slumped back in his chair. His eyes flickered to Nari, and, hiding her shock, she smirked at him. He rolled his eyes, almost as an automatic reaction, and blinked, seemingly surprised. Watching the interaction, Sarutobi's smile grew wider.

"You are dismissed." The boy stood up, walking to the door at the end of the office.

Just as he had opened the door and was about to step out, Sarutobi added, "Ah, one more thing, Sakamoto-kun." The boy turned around, confused.

"Hai?"

"The reason that Honda-san is so irate is that her books were being donated to the orphanage. Uzumaki-san here can attest that they have very little to read there. One of the books happened to be an incredibly rare copy of _The Shodaime's Legacy_, worth several million ryo. We have heard reports of shinobi looking to acquire the book for clients, but we decided that it was unlikely that there would be an attack on Honda-san from one of them. However, you can never know. Don't grow complacent due to the fact that a mission is a C-rank, Sakamoto-kun. Look underneath the underneath. Things don't always tend to go to plan."

Noticeably shaken, Sakamoto bowed at his superior before exiting

"Good thing I'm graduating today, Jiji. Or else I'd have to deal with "Sakamoto-kun" back in the academy," Nari said, laughing. Sarutobi gave her a long-suffering look.

"Why didn't you wait for Himiko-san to announce you, Nari-chan?" She frowned.

"But jounin always come in through the window! They never wait for Himiko-san to walk up here and ask for your permission. They just come in!" she exclaimed. "And Sakana-san didn't have to either!" She pointed an accusing finger at the fish-masked ANBU. Indeed, the design on the mask was complicated and strange, but she could just barely make out the countenance of a fish amidst the swirls.

The short, black-haired ANBU, for his - she could tell by the tattoo on his left shoulder - credit, didn't do as much as twitch. The Hokage rolled his weary eyes without turning around.

"Sakana-san, an Academy student was able to detect you," he chided, ignoring Nari's interjection of "For now!" after her rank.

"Apologies, Hokage-sama," came a rough, throaty voice. "Uzumaki-san has a talent for realizing our presence." Sarutobi nodded, accepting the compliment for the child. As an ANBU shinobi, Sakana-san had learned to never make excuses for his own inability.

He addressed Nari, "And Nari-chan, due to their service to the village, jounin have earned a right to minor eccentricities. You, an Academy student, have not." He gave her a piercing look as she stuck out her tongue. "That doesn't explain why you did not wait for Himiko-san."

"She wouldn't have let me in," Nari replied, as if it were obvious.

"What?" The Hokage looked dumbfounded. She rolled her eyes.

"She wouldn't have let me in." Nari repeated, separating each word. "She would have pretended to walk up here, and then come back and told me that you were busy."

"Oh, Nari-chan," he said softly, sharing a look with Sakana-san, as if he could see the masked man's eyes. She harrumphed.

"And don't tell me that you told off all your assistants, that they're too afraid that they'll end up like Asa-san to do that. Because Asa-san was supposed to be too afraid of becoming the next Yoshie-san," she stated, irritated. Sarutobi was lost for words.

"If it makes you feel better, I had an assignment rehabilitating the two," Sakana-san interjected amicably, ignoring the piercing look given to him by his employer. He seemed to be staring at her, but it was hard to tell. "Hebika Yoshie lives at home with her mother and Butase Asa has found work in the CCC."

The CCC stood for the "Civilian Cleanup Crew", a job that involved picking up trash in the streets and beautifying Konoha. It was known for being mainly comprised of minor lawbreakers, as it was a community service opportunity and because no one else would hire petty criminals when Konoha had such a low crime rate. It was also known for being inescapable once you joined. The leader of the Crew apparently had a contract from the Nidaime's time that said that the person in charge could get anyone who tried to leave without permission - which was hard to come by - arrested.

Nari could feel her mood lifting. Still, she asked suspiciously, "Why would an ANBU be in charge of something like that?"

He continued to stare at her unnervingly through his mask.

"Why _wouldn't_ an ANBU be in charge of that?" he slyly replied. Nari could think of a million answers that all at once seemed too foolish to say. She decided that she liked Sakana-san.

Kurama, for his part, seemed to think so too.

'_I want to eat him.'_

'That's quite a compliment,' she thought, amused. Kurama just growled happily in response.

"Sakana-_san_," Sarutobi scolded. "ANBU missions are to be of the utmost secrecy." Sakana-san didn't reply, but seemed to exude an aura of smugness. Sarutobi massaged the bridge of his nose with two weathered fingers. There was silence in the office, except for the sounds of children going to the Academy drifting in through the enormous window behind the desk.

"Anyway Jiji, just thought that I'd stop by before the test," Nari said, scratching the back of her head sheepishly. She pushed back her chair, the dull scraping sound emanating in the silence of the room, and stood up, walking to the end of the room.

"A-ah yes. Good luck, Nari-chan," the old man acknowledged.

"I don't need luck! I'll pass because I'm so awesome!" Nari announced, laughing.

She opened the door, about to step out, when he said, "Please wait for Himiko-san next time, Nari-chan." She sighed and turned around.

"She's not going to let me in." Her voice was solemn.

"You don't know that for sure." His wise old eyes seemed pitying, the way they crinkled under his hat. "You should learn to trust people again, Nari-chan." Her own blue eyes narrowed.

"Tell me, Jiji. Is it better to trust people and be hurt again and again, or to not trust anyone at all and not have to worry about that? Because in my case, those are the only two options."

'_It's better to destroy everyone.'_

'Even if I trust them?' she asked, deciding to oblige him just this once.

'_Everyone.'_ He seemed to be grinning evilly in her mind. She didn't dignify this with a response, so as to not encourage the demon and his one-track mind.

Outside her mind, Sarutobi shook his head, unable to decide how to best reply. There was really no way to refute her point.

"Good luck, Nari-chan," he repeated, unable to settle on something suitable to say.

"Thanks Jiji, but I won't need it," she answered cheekily, walking out of the office and slamming the door behind her.

She walked down the long hallway, pausing by the Mission Assignments door near the end.

"Sakana-san, the Academy is next door. You don't need to follow me," she said without turning around.

"Uzumaki-san y-"

"Call me Nari."

"Hm?" asked the fish-masked man.

"Call me Nari, Sakana-san. I hate when people I like get formal on me, and I've decided that you get the honor of being liked by me." She whirled around to face him and was surprised that he wasn't hidden in the shadows. It probably something to do with the fact that no one else was in the hallway.

"Well then, should I call you Nari-chan?" he inquired, uncertainly. Nari hadn't expected him to give in that easily, but she hid her shock by wrinkling her nose.

"Jiji is the only one who calls me that." It was true. Even Iruka just called her Nari, Uzumaki if he was angry or in class.

"All the more reason to, then." He seemed to be grinning behind his mask. "But anyway, Nari-_chan_, you seem to have a gift for detecting us."

She didn't bother to correct his assumption that the demon she was jailing had not been hissing into her mind about his presence the moment he slipped out of the office to follow her.

"I guess," she said. She spun back around and reached for the handle of the door that would lead out to the assistant's desks.

"Ah, Nari-chan, wait a moment please."

She turned her head to look at him.

"Hm?" she said, imitating his previous response.

"In regards to what you previously asked the Hokage," he led in to his statement, trying to gauge her response.

"Ah."

Seemingly taking this as a positive acknowledgement, he continued, "I believe that you have a third option." She gave him a sideways look that he ignored.

"Trust people without getting hurt," he said, as if it were obvious.

"And how do you suppose I do that?" she asked with an obligatory eye roll at his suggestion. Life would be easier if you could trust everyone without having it come back and bite you in the ass.

"Get strong." There was a hard edge to his voice. "Pass your exam today, and train. Do missions, make a name for yourself. Become a strong shinobi, strong enough to trust people, strong enough to defeat anyone who betrays that trust." He mirrored her sideways glance. "If you become strong enough, you might just be recruited into the ANBU one day."

She stared at him, taking in his words. Was this really another choice? How could she have not thought of that?

'_Because you're an idiot.'_

Ignoring the words of the fox, she suddenly smiled at the man.

"You know, Sakana-san, I might have to do just that."

Strength.

Her eyes gleamed, the thought reverberating in her mind.


End file.
